p53 codon 72 polymorphisms and random amplified polymorphic DNA analysis of non-melanoma skin cancer through archival formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue

Non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) is classified among the ten most frequentcancers in Malaysia. A common polymorphism at codon 72 of the p53 tumor suppressorgene and its influence on cancer risk has been studied for different types ofcancer with mixed and inconsistent results with limited published data on theMalaysian population so far. In the present study, the frequency of p53 codon72 polymorphism in 60 patients with NMSC was investigated from archival formalin-fixedparaffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue obtained from Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia(HUKM). Additionally, random amplified polymorhic DNA -polymorphic chain reaction(RAPD-PCR) was employed for preliminary biomarker development. NMSC FFPE samples(70%) possess Arg/Arg, 20% with Pro/Pro and 10% with Arg/Pro. In total, therewas no significant difference in the p53 codon 72 genotypes between histologicaltypes of NMSC, gender, race, tumor location and age group. However, there wasan apparent age-associated increase in the Arg/Arg genotype but did not reachstatistical significance (P=0.235). NMSC types and demographic characteristicsdid not influence genotype distribution. On the other hand, BCC and SCC distributionsare influenced by age group, race and tumor location.